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Sunday, March 2, 2014

Elevation or Windage?

What is more important to develop in cowboy fast draw technique, elevation or windage (left-right).
Most mentors would say that it is most important to be lined up on the target in respect to left and right and then to adjust the elevation as you see where the misses are. I think this is poor advice. Normally you are told to just "aim higher" or "aim lower" to compensate. Aiming is only relevant for "the point and shoot" shooter. You should not be aiming. you should not be thinking about aiming. Any aiming or any thinking about aiming slows you down.

Another method of moving the elevation of the point of impact is to adjust your balance, forward or backward, as needed. Again change during the shot will slow you down, any thinking about change will slow you down. But you can change your balance before the set command. Once you have change your balance, forget about it. Draw your normal draw.

Another method is to use body movement. Some shooter visibly and sometime violently move to adjust the point of impact. Any additional motion can not be good for accuracy.

Some say you can fire on the up swing of the gun. Accuracy then becomes a function of timing. May be quick but seems to be tough to do accurately to me.

I suggest a much better way is to develop your draw so that you consistently shoot 50" inches above the ground from a stable shooting position. When practicing or developing your draw right or left makes no difference. Every shot should hit 50" above the ground. A taller shooter will have an advantage, since all shooter will shoot slightly upward, but the tall shooter will have less of upward trajectory. The perfect shot string will be one which all bullets hit in a horizontal line. That would mean the shooter is consistently drawing and shooting in the same position as it relates to elevation.

Why this is so important is that once your draw has been finalized, you can adjust your point of impact right or left BEFORE the set command without aiming and without any change to your draw. If hitting right turn your stance slightly to left. Once you have adjusted your stance forget it. Do not aim, do not think about aiming, do not think about hitting. You simply draw your normal draw that will send the bullet 50" above the ground. You change nothing. If by chance, you now hit left, a slight adjustment back the other way should split the difference.

Old Gunslinger

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It us not the critic who counts; not the man who points how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at best knows in the end triumph of high achievement; and and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.